This invention is a resistance-based exercise device for beneficial workout and development of specific muscle groups, namely of the lower abdominal and buttocks musculature consisting of upper, lower and transverse abdominal muscles, gluteus maximus and upper leg muscles. Shoulders and latisimus dorsi are also toned and defined.
In the world of fitness, exercise and body-building, the efficient development of abdominal muscles of the human body is particularly difficult. Because the abdominal muscles are not attached to any joint, traditional joint movement exercises have little or no effect on the abdominals. Exercises such as sit-ups or weight-loaded variations on sit-ups may indirectly involve the abdominal muscles but are inefficient because much of the exercise energy is dissipated in the joints and muscles attached to the joints such as hip flexors. Thus, the traditional exercises and machines designed to exercise abdominal muscles are inefficient and require long and laborious programs of rigorous exercise.
The abdominal muscles, consist of several muscle groups, all located in the midsection, just below the chest to the pubic bone. These include: rectus abdominis which is made up of upper, middle, and lower abdominals; transverse abdominis; and the obliques. The abdominals bring the ribs and the pelvis closer together.
The upper, middle and lower abdominals start near the middle of the sternum and run vertically to the lower part of the pelvis; they are responsible for flexing the vertebral column or helping curl the trunk when doing such activities as sit-ups or sitting up in bed. It is important to have strong abdominal muscles for most motions, including common day-to-day activities. These muscles help support the spine. Weak muscles also create greater pressure on the lower back and often cause lower back pain. Furthermore, weak muscles can create an unattractive physical appearance and result in loss of self esteem. Strong abdominal muscles, on the other hand, not only help in physical appearance and self esteem but also aid in physical activities such as running and other sports.
Sit-ups and similar exercises are often used by people attempting to strengthen the abdominal muscles. Unfortunately, many of these traditional abdominal exercises, such as the basic sit-up, involve the abdominal muscles mostly in a secondary role as a stabilizer. The bulk of the motion in these exercises is actually provided by the muscle group known as the hip flexors. For example, if a person performs sit-ups with his/her feet held down, the hip flexors, rather than the abdominal muscles may end up doing the majority of the work. This may lead to strong hip flexor muscles pulling down on the pelvis. Without strong lower abdominal muscles to counteract this downward pull this may result in a forward tilting pelvis rather than a balanced pelvis and potentially lead to lower back pain.
In addition, injuries may occur as a result of improper exercising techniques. For example, injuries often occur when a person incorrectly performs an exercise, such as the traditional sit-up in which a person lies back down on the floor with hands behind the head and then attempts to raise the trunk of the body in a xe2x80x9ccrunchingxe2x80x9d motion. Often times when doing traditional sit-ups a person will pull on the neck to aid in performing the movement, thus increasing the chances of a neck injury and decreasing the work of the abdominal muscles. Furthermore, when performing a traditional sit-up a person may not move the head neck and shoulder as a single unit or may incorrectly arch the back thereby leading to possible injury. In addition, due to the varying degrees of difficulty of moving the body through the range of the traditional sit-up, such as the difficulty in initially moving the body from the floor, people often use jerking type motions to perform a sit-up. Finally, traditional sit-ups are often painful to perform on a hard surface such as an uncarpeted floor. The present invention allows for an abdominal workout on such hard surfaces by providing a frame on which the person performs the exercise.
The present device allows for the exercising of the abdominal muscles by simple smooth motions which do not require jerking or the need to grab the head to move the upper body.
In an effort to provide for the efficient and easy exercise of muscles, including the abdominals, a variety of exercise devices have been developed, including powered machines, that selectively challenge different sets of body muscles. One area of exercise is directed to the abdominal muscle sets. One such device described in the patent literature as is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,425 (Miller ""425). The Miller patent teaches a device that involves direct, progressive resistance to the user over the field of action. This means that during movement over the inherent range of motion for the prior art device, that its resistance level increases linearly, as opposed to a preferred constant plus consistent resistance level throughout the device range of motion.
The prior art device lacks the mechanical features and architecture that can provide toning in the course of using the device""s motion. This feature is made more evident by resort to FIGS. 11-17, of Miller on its one preferred embodiment. FIGS. 11 and 12 show the extreme postures effected in using the device upright and crouched. Looking to Miller""s FIGS. 13, 15, and 16, an elastic band 124 is rigged over spaced-apart, opposing hood ends 120/134, so that user exertion on cross bands 40/41 results in a linearly increasing resistance as the finite length band 134 is extended.
As discussed above, there is a need for more efficient devices for exercise and development of abdominal musculature in addition to sporting and personal appearance aspects, in that the medical consequences of weak abdominal muscles are dangerously weak back and spinal erector muscle groups which oppose the frontal abdominal groups. Proper and efficient exercise oft he abdominal muscles will tend to require strengthening of back musculature, having both remedial and preventive beneficial effects relating to common lower back and spinal problems.
Because many prior art methods are oriented to controlled posture and tensioning with large weight-type devices, the devices can not be adapted to a portable use. In order to be made convenient, portable and accessible to a large market share, a new and more compact method was sought which might approach the efficiency of the prior art larger machines and retain many of the benefits newly developed for abdominal musculature exercise.
Previous attempts to provide abdominal exercise devices, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,05,832, do not provide support for the device other than that supplied by the user. For instance, the device of that patent requires the device to be belted to the to the user""s body by waistband 3. In addition, such devices are complicated, involving pulleys 8. The position oft he hands may be difficult for those with shoulder problems. Further, these devices encourage the pushing out of the abdominal muscles. cumbersome to use and is not readily adjustable to users of different sizes.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an abdominal and leg exercise device that can be used alternately for abdominal toning and leg muscle toning.
It is another object of the invention to provide an exercise device which incorporates a preferred constant resistance level feature occurring throughout the defined range of motion for the device user.
Due to the difficult nature of exercising the abdominal muscles, it is desirable to have a device which allows for the safe and convenient exercise of these muscles.
The current invention is designed to aid a person in putting the body in a position where the appropriate muscles are utilized.
Thus it is an object of the present invention to enable exercise of the abdominal musculature in an efficient and effective way while ensuring constant, proper body alignment thus avoiding twisting injuries.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a means of exercising the abdominal musculature that will isolate a major portion of the required user effort on the abdominal muscles being exercised, minimizing wasted motion.
A further object of the invention is to provide a means of exercising the upper leg muscle without the use of heavy weights or a separate device.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device that will correctively address lower back problems at the same time as exercising the abdominal musculature.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device that can be adjustable over a wide range for a variety of users of different heights and particular physical condition.
A further objective of the invention is to provide a simplified exercise method for development of the abdominal musculature that involves a minimum of separate parts and can be easily used by an unsophisticated purchaser.
Another objective is to reduce the effects of spinal lordosis.
Another objective of the invention is to provide a device which eliminates potential injury causing jerking motions of the user.
These and other objectives of the invention are accomplished by providing a device consisting primarily of a resilient spring-band of metal or resilient plastic configured so that one end of the leaf-spring shape is placed on the pubo-pelvic junction, upper leg or lower abdominal muscles to provide resistance exercise for the associated muscle groups. The spring can be deformed by means of pulling against a padded handle attached to the devices frame. The deformation and resistance of the spring may additionally be controlled by an adjustable device such as a spring, a hydraulic or air cylinder, or the like. The exercise is then repeated in sets as is common with development exercises of various kinds. The user may also place the device in a horizontal position on the floors such that the user is on xe2x80x9call foursxe2x80x9d with the knees resting in padded cups. The user then pulls on the handles and moves the pelvis forward against the resistance means.
The present invention also eliminates injuries caused by jerking motions common with other abdominal exercises by providing a constant resistance to movement and stability to the user such that such jerking motions are unnecessary. Instead of having a starting position in which the user is lying back down, the current invention allows the exerciser to be in a stable xe2x80x9call foursxe2x80x9d position when performing the exercise, thereby eliminating strain on the neck or shoulders.
When used in the horizontal position, the user places the frame feet down on the floor or other suitable surface. The user then mounts the frame by grasping the handles at the front of the machine with the hands and placing knees on knee pads at the rear of the frame such that the upper portion of the legs are perpendicular to the frame so that the user is in an xe2x80x9call foursxe2x80x9d position. The pad member is adjusted so as to be positioned at the pubo-pelvic junction but resting against the medial pubis bone. From this xe2x80x9call foursxe2x80x9d position the user flexes the pubic carriage forward and upward against the resistance and then relaxes back into the starting posture where the movement is immediately repeated. The abdominal area is thus exercised by rotating the resistance means through a range of motion at constant resistance.